The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey [called Life!]

Last week The Hobbit released amidst great anticipation and fanfare. It had a record breaking opening weekend in the US box office earning $84.8 million, surpassing the debut of the previous The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Like most fantasy movies, The Hobbits too has its share of knights, elves, dragons, wizards, etc. but nonetheless it conveys some pertinent messages which are important to us not only as part of an entrepreneurial ecosystem, but also as simple human beings. Here are my 4 key takeaways from the movie:

Gandalf: You'll have a tale or two to tell when you come back. Bilbo Baggins: You can promise that I will come back? Gandalf: ...No. And if you do, you will not be the same.

We are always scared of the unknown, the uncertain and this fear prohibits us from taking that one step which could change our lives forever. Maybe we would not succeed, maybe we will succeed- in either case we would have learnt something special which would not happen otherwise.

Gandalf: Home is now behind you. The world is ahead.

We all love the little comforts which life offers –that apartment in a posh locality, that high- paying job in an MNC, the golf matches, the international vacations, etc. and soon complacency sets in. We get restricted to our microcosmic world forgetting that there is a world outside too which is more difficult, more challenging and sometimes more rewarding.

Thorin Oakenshield: Loyalty, honor, a willing heart, I can ask no more than that.

When things are going our way, we often make hordes of friends and well-wishers but in times of distress only a few stay back. What do we actually need to look for in a friend / team?

Bilbo Baggins: I have... I have never used a sword in my life. Gandalf: And I hope you never have to. But if you do, remember this: true courage is about not knowing when to take a life, but when to spare one.

Life throws at us different twists and turns. Sometimes we may be in a position of advantage. Our actions then would decide whether we are really virtuous or not.

True, none of these messages are original and we have heard them before. But maybe their reiteration may help us in imbibing a bit of them and change us into better entrepreneurs, better human beings.